Co-construction of desired behavior through health talk radio program in Ethiopia

Abstract

This article presents an analysis of a health talk radio program in Ethiopia. Drawing on a conversation analytic framework, it describes how interaction in the health talk radio is organized structurally and demonstrates how participants in the talk show work collaboratively to the realization of the program’s goal—promoting social behavior change (SBC) relating to a public health concern. It reveals the interaction resources the participants employ from the opening through the closing phases in the organization of the talk show to clearly mark and add to the accomplishment of its institutional feature. The analysis is based on more than 8 h of recorded and transcribed talk data from a public FM radio station. The article contributes to research on media discourse and health education as its analysis has focused on a talk radio show from a linguistically and socio-culturally distinct context (Ethiopia) and in a less studied sub-genre of talk radio (public health).